Let the meaning choose the word

Posted on February 1, 2013 by Jamie Jauncey

In 1946, George Orwell wrote of the English language: “It becomes ugly and inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish, but the slovenliness of our language makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts.” He was speaking, in the main, … Continue reading →

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In praise of Randy Newman

Posted on January 25, 2013 by Jamie Jauncey

On Wednesday evening, on Radio 4’s Front Row, Mark Lawson introduced a short reading with these words: “This passage from the book contains offensive sectarian terms, although clearly they’re reported rather than endorsed by the author.” The offending words were … Continue reading →

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Arctic fox

Posted on January 18, 2013 by Jamie Jauncey

Yesterday I travelled through a monochrome landscape. It reminded me of those 17th century Dutch winter scenes with skaters and dogs, pedlars and musicians, taking their pleasure or plying their trade under leaden skies, all watched over by crows in … Continue reading →

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Midwinter blues

Posted on January 11, 2013 by Jamie Jauncey

Sometimes you just have to put pen to paper and see where you go. As EM Forster said, ‘How do I know what I think till I see what I say?’ I had planned to start this in good time, … Continue reading →

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Good tidings

Posted on December 14, 2012 by Jamie Jauncey

‘I guess I’m a “bad news” guy and you’re my “good news” twin…’ So said my old friend Paul Phillips recently. Paul writes a well-informed and trenchant blog on those big topical issues – Savile, Leveson, Starbucks and so on … Continue reading →

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House of stories

Posted on December 7, 2012 by Jamie Jauncey

In March we’re taking a Dark Angels group to the Highlands to see if we can write a collective novel. It’s a slightly mad idea but we’ve reached the point now where we have a group of people who’ve been … Continue reading →

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A long shot

Posted on November 30, 2012 by Jamie Jauncey

What is one to make of these things? Two weeks ago Sarah, my wife, was travelling home from London on the train. She was restless and couldn’t find the right place to settle. One carriage was too cold. Another was too … Continue reading →

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The next big thing

Posted on November 23, 2012 by Jamie Jauncey

I’ve been persuaded by my fellow Dark Angel John Simmons to take part in something known as The Next Big Thing. It’s described as an author blog chain. This is how it works. I answer the questions below and ‘tag’ … Continue reading →

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Leading and following

Posted on November 16, 2012 by Jamie Jauncey

I listened to a talk the other day by Mark Robb, a former member of the M&S business recovery team – the firefighters who got the retailer out of the hole it had fallen into during the late nineties. He … Continue reading →

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Spirited talk

Posted on November 12, 2012 by Jamie Jauncey

David Dimbleby spoke to John Humphrys this morning on Radio 4, bringing a veteran’s perspective to the current BBC furore. George Entwhistle, he suggested, is a decent man but not the right one for the job; he lacked the pugnacity … Continue reading →

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